08/10/2025
COMMON BELIEFS
This is likely to be a long one, but stick with it if you can, especially if you’re a massage therapist…
I’m sure the majority of you will know by now I don’t often conform to the usual therapy ways of thinking! There’s a reason for this, and it’s because the usual way isn’t necessarily the same as the right way! If it was, then there would be no need for alternative therapists!
What happens when people get back pain? They take some pain killers in the hope that it goes away in a few days or less. When it doesn’t, they go to the GP who will likely give them a prescription for stronger pain killers and a random diagnosis of something like muscle strain or ‘wear and tear’. Or to make them feel really special, they might get a herniated disc!
When the pain continues it’s back to the docs for the physiotherapy referral and, with any luck, the appointment will arrive before the end of the modern era!
Once the physio has finished impressing you with their IT skills 🖨️ and you’re still in pain, then what?
Of course, it’s the chiropractor! 🧛 They’ve been expecting you and they’re rubbing their hands at the prospect of a lucrative client!
After one of these guys has given you their third block of prepaid ‘treatments’ and you’ve eventually figured out that you’ve been taken for a ride, then what’s left to try?
The title of this post is ‘common beliefs’ and what do the GP, chiro and physio all have in common?
It’s that most of us believe they can help people in pain! Only to find out that’s not always the case, and from an alternative therapist’s point of view, that’s a lot of people!
We know this because we’re usually the last therapists in line after the client has exhausted all of the aforementioned treatments!
I’ve kind of hinted before that I’m getting closer to sharing what I’ve learned with others. As much as I still consider myself a youngster, my almost 55 year old body is telling me to calm it!
My job is very physical, so as I start to slow things down I’ll need to pass on ‘the knowledge’ if you will. Don’t worry, I’m not stopping yet, it’ll be more of a long transition period.
The obvious place to start is with table massage therapists, because the majority of them already understand the importance of holistic and intuitive working. They touch their client’s bodies in a way that conventional therapists don’t, meaning they also have an understanding of when something feels right or doesn’t! More importantly they’re usually a much more open minded bunch!
What I’m about to say may surprise some of you, but to me, an experienced massage therapist already has way more ability to help people in pain than a GP, chiropractor and physiotherapist put together, and I really mean that!
This isn’t a common belief, or at least not in this part of the world. Western style massages, like Swedish or deep tissue are great for relaxing and relieving tension. Like most treatments, they offer some sort of therapeutic value, but they’re generally not considered remedial because of the nature of the delivery!
The table is a hindrance to a successful treatment, and the main problem is that an oil only massage tends to follow some guidelines. If you’re a massage therapist, please don’t be offended by this and allow me to explain…
The rule of thumb is that the hands should never leave the body and there should be a flow to the therapy. This is usually a good thing because it means the receiver feels relaxed, and it makes the treatment enjoyable.
This makes less sense when your client wants help with a particular problem. The difference between a massage therapist and a remedial therapist is knowing when to stop and then doing something about the problem area you’ve just found.
It’s the reason why a massage routine alone generally isn’t the answer, because doing this multiple times is going to mess with the flow. Again, it’s the difference between a relaxing treatment or a remedial therapy, and the smartest therapists should be offering both.
The common belief for therapists is to treat their client where they’re experiencing pain, but more times than not, it’s in the wrong place because these are the symptoms and not the root cause!
This is the kind of stuff I eventually want to share with massage therapists who want to move from what they’re doing now into the world of bodywork!
Bodywork is a word that’s often used for marketing on the socials in the wrong way, and it’s used to describe any type of therapy. To me, a bodyworker is someone who can identify problems and blend techniques in an unconventional way to get the desired results for their clients!
Personally, I don’t think it should apply to someone who has an abundance of internet certificates and a lengthy treatment list that’s unrelated to holistic therapy. All that really makes me think is, what do you actually specialise in?
As usual, I’m off on a tangent, so let me reiterate. So far, I’ve been comparing massage therapists with all the usual ways of finding pain relief, and I’ll break it down even more. In fact, I’m going to be very direct because I want to get my point across…
I’m often accused of unfairly criticising conventional treatments, but that’s not how I see it! Okay, it is a fun way to publicly reply to disdainful practitioners and therapists, but truthfully my posts are about awareness! This doesn’t make me popular with them, but it’s easy to evidence, especially if I’ve helped their previous clients in one or two goes after they’ve attended their clinic for weeks or more!
Take physiotherapy for example. The truth is, I actually believe this is a really important job. If you’ve experienced serious injury or invasive surgery then a physio is exactly the person you want to see to get you back on your feet. For everything else… well I’m sure there’s times where it might be helpful, but when considering all of the common causes of pain I’d go as far as to say that it’s pointless!
Chiropractors?
There’s three reasons why people continually go back for frequent appointments without results…
1️⃣ Most people in pain don’t have a skeletal problem regardless of what they tell you!
2️⃣ For people who do have a skeletal issue, it’s because the real problem is nearly always related to soft tissue dysfunction!
3️⃣ It’s five minutes of spine farting nonsense! 💨
GP?
Pain killers have their place, but we all know they just hide the problem at best, and it’s fixing nothing!
Sports massage?
I know some good ones who understand holistic working, or they have a unique style. I’m interested in meeting more of these therapists however, my experience of the generic stuff, re pain relief at least, has left me with the opinion that it’s just 45 minutes of fannying about!
So taking all of this into consideration, my mission is to shift the common belief that massage therapists have less pain relieving skills than a conventional practitioner or therapist. My belief is it’s the other way around!
I’ve already started putting together an interactive workshop but it’s work in progress and I’m a bit of a procrastinator, so I’ll eventually get there with it. If it all goes to plan then there will also be some CPD points to boot!
Better still, it’s not going to be top heavy in anatomy, although a level 3 anatomy and physiology diploma or equivalent will be a requirement to attend. Attendees will also need a recognised massage qualification with a face to face assessment!
I can imagine there’s now eyes rolling at that last statement by the anatomy aficionados who spent years at university to learn what they do. Just because you know the location of the ‘palmaris profundus’ that doesn’t make you a successful therapist! 🙃
If that’s what they think then they’ll likely be less smug about it when massage therapists are leaving them in their dust. When it comes to practical solutions for pain relief, I’ve got knowledge and techniques that aren’t on the conventional therapy radar!
This workshop won’t be about what I do, because that requires years of learning and experience. It will be about how therapists can get the same results as a floor worker on their table, for all common causes of pain.
Where appropriate, there will likely be some mat work due to the table being a barrier to some pain relieving techniques! The main thing about a successful therapy, is simply knowing where to look and then knowing what to do about it!
I can’t show massage therapists how to fix everything, because I can’t fix everything, and remember, sometimes not getting the results that your client hoped for isn’t just down to the therapist. There’s always other reasons, and I can help with ways to explain this.
Positively, if it means massage therapists can get close to 90% success in one to four treatments for all of the common areas of pain, then they are now the new heroes of pain relief stories!
Word of mouth is always the best advertisement. If you help someone fully recover from chronic pain they will tell everyone they know!
I knew this would be a long one, but I didn’t expect it to turn into ‘war and peace’ so if you made it all the way to the end then thanks for taking the time to read it, and here’s why massage therapists in particular should take note…
Massage therapists are popping up all over the place now, meaning there’s no room for mediocre…
Back pain, hip pain, shoulder pain and neck pain. These should be every massage/remedial therapist’s bread and butter treatments, and what’s my biggest secret of all?
It’s easy! 🤫
This is my retirement plan. If I can deliver workshops in the UK and abroad for therapists who want to learn real remedial techniques then that’s what I’ll do, providing there’s a demand for it of course!
If not, then I’m going back to Greece to drive my taxi! 🚕
